EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn.—One shouldn’t overreact to Christian Ponder’s worst game of the season.

It’s acceptable—or at least should be—that an inexperienced second-year quarterback is going to occasionally look like an inexperienced second-year quarterback. And after five consecutive efficient to exceptional performances, Sunday was Ponder’s first clunker.

Vikings fans shouldn't read too much into Christian Ponder's worst game of the season. (AP Photo)

He turned the ball over three times. Two came inside his 20-yard line and handed the Redskins 14 points, including a pick-six that put the Vikings down by 19 early in the fourth quarter. The other was an interception in the end zone that ended a comeback flurry in the waning seconds.

At 4-2, the Vikings and Ponder still are a surprising success story. But the next two games—at home against Arizona and Tampa Bay during a four-day stretch—will have a key role in making or breaking the lasting perception of both this season.

The Vikings can’t afford to be .500 going into a brutal schedule over the final eight games.

NOTE: Adrian Peterson had 79 yards on 17 carries (4.6), but said he was disappointed that he missed some holes in the red zone. He had red-zone runs of 5, minus-1 and minus-2 yards as the Vikings had to settle for three first-quarter field goals.